Production at the La Zanja gold mine in Peru's Cajamarca region could increase to about 110,000 to 115,000 ounces in 2012, the chief financial officer of precious metals mining company Compania de Minas Buenaventura SAA (BVN, BUENAVC1.VL), Carlos Galvez, said.

Buenaventura has a 53.06% stake in La Zanja and U.S.-based Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM) has the remaining interest. Operations at the mine began in September 2010 at an annual production rate of 100,000 ounces of gold.

Galvez said output could increase at La Zanja next year due to higher grades. "We are reviewing our models," the executive said Wednesday during a conference call to discuss the company's second-quarter results.

In the second quarter, La Zanja turned out 36,920 ounces of gold with a cash operating cost of $304 per ounce.

Buenaventura has several mines in Peru and owns 43.65% of Minera Yanacocha, South America's largest gold mine. It also has a 19.26% share in copper producer Sociedad Minera Cerro Verde SAA (CVERDEC1.VL).

The company's equity gold production, including Yanacocha, was 269,778 ounces in the second quarter, up 3% from the same period last year. Buenaventura's silver output rose 11% year-over-year to 3.73 million ounces and its copper production, including Cerro Verde, climbed 8% to 17,134 metric tons.

Cerro Verde is majority controlled by Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (FCX).

Cerro Verde is planning a $3.5 billion expansion project that will increase throughput to 360,000 metric tons per day from 120,000 metric tons a day.

Buenaventura Chief Executive Roque Benavides said that he hopes the environmental impact study for the project will be approved before the end of 2011.

"We hope [it will be approved] by the end of this year, but with permitting it is always difficult to say," Benavides said.

Buenaventura is Peru's largest publicly traded precious metals mining company.

-By Ryan Dube, Dow Jones Newswires; 51-1 9454 043 802; peru@dowjones.com

Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Jun 2024 bis Jul 2024 Click Here for more Freeport McMoRan Charts.
Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Jul 2023 bis Jul 2024 Click Here for more Freeport McMoRan Charts.